1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for hydrogenation of diacetoxybutene. More particularly, the present invention relates to a process for hydrogenating diacetoxybutene which has been prepared by the acetoxylation reaction of butadiene in the presence of a supported hydrogenation catalyst.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Diacetoxybutane obtained by the hydrogenation of diacetoxybutene is important as an intermediate starting material for butanediol and tetrahydrofuran which are useful as solvents. It is known that diacetoxybutane may be prepared by the hydrogenation of diacetoxybutene in the presence of a palladium or nickel catalyst. The latter compound may be produced by reacting butadiene with acetic acid and oxygen, (British Pat. No. 1,170,222). When utilizing this hydrogenation reaction on an industrial scale, it is very important to keep the reaction temperature within a prescribed range. Since the reaction is exothermic and the temperature region suitable for effecting it is comparatively narrow, this becomes a difficult task and represents a major disadvantage.
Diluting the concentration of diacetoxybutene with a solvent has been used in the past for controlling the hydrogenation reaction temperature. However, this method is not particularly attractive because a large amount of solvent is required and additional steps, such as recovery of the solvent after the reaction, product refining, or the like, become necessary. Consequently, it would be most desirable to have a process for hydrogenation of diacetoxybutene free from the above-described disadvantages.